Second chances
by Dhampire12
Summary: After Cocoon is saved by Fang and Vanille a chance meeting with the Goddess Etro gives Lightning a second chance at everything. Now back at the beginning she must find a way to save Cocoon, Fang, and Vanille from the unending darkness that has its grasp on the future.
1. Going back

_**I do not own Final fantasy 13 or any of the characters. I only own the plot and any characters I create myself. Thank you.**_

_**A.N – **__**This story is going to be a Lightning/Fang or Lightning/Amador pairing in the future. This will be a bit different than most stories so please bear with me. It will mostly be told from Light's point of view and I will specify if I change point of views. If there is anything wrong then please do not hesitate to inform me so that I can fix it as soon as possible. Also Snow proposed to Serah a day earlier than in the game and Lightning will be just a bit OOC.**_

_**Summary – **__**After the fall of Orphan instead of being crystallized Lightning ends up getting sent back to the past and ends up back in Bodham the day before her birthday. Knowing what the future holds now she journeys to save her sister and save the future while changing as much as possible.**_

_**Also this story was given to me by a friend so she will not longer be posting it on her page and instead I will be continuing it.  
**_

Chapter 1,

Smiling softly at our victory I stood up and put my gunblade back in its sheath. The dying screams of Orphan had yet to fade but at least it was over and everyone was still alive. Looking around I watched as the members of our group congratulated one another, for once looking truly happy.

Before we had a chance to leave the ground itself started shaking underneath our feet. It seemed that all of Cocoon was experiencing the same thing and I knew, with a heavy heart, that the planet we all loved was getting ready to fall from the sky.

A bright light filled the room and when it disappeared I realized that we were floating above the city of Eden, like after we had defeated the Pulse Fal'cie in Hanging Edge. Looking down at the city we all watched as everything started to collapse.

Feeling a slight tingling sensation on my arms I moved them towards my face and saw that they were glowing, turning to crystal.

"Stay Together!" I yelled and reached out for Hope, who had both Sazh and Snow with him. All of us linked hands when Snow reached out for Fang and Vanille, who were currently below us holding hands.

I watched in awe as they moved as if kissing then everything was filled with darkness. Feeling came back in small waves first my fingers and toes to the rest of my body. Slowly opening my eyes and sitting up I noticed that I was sitting in a field of flowers and looking up at the crystallized form of Cocoon.

Gingerly standing up I brushed off my cloths and opted for just walking around, hoping to find everyone else. After walking around for what seemed like hours I finally came upon a strange, pure white, throne sitting atop a mass of crystal.

Walking up to it I read the encryption on it. 'Goddess Etro forever reigns here.' Backing up I could only stare at the throne.

'_**You wish for a second chance?'**_ A deep, multi layered female voice said.

The voice sounded more in my head than actually hearing it so I closed my eyes. "I wish for a chance to fix what happened and save both Fang and Vanille from their fate." I thought, for once voicing my own wishes to this strange voice.

'_**A second chance I can grant you if you so wish it but know this, your choices this time will have a permanent effect on the future you desire.'**_

I thought about it for a bit and opened my eyes. "Yes, I wish for a second chance. A second chance to be with my sister and a chance to let Fang and Vanille see the world they so desperately wanted to protect." I shouted out at the voice.

The voice chuckled softly, thought it sounded like bells in my head. _**'Your wish shall be granted. Save the future and my fate as well, for if you fail I will die and the world will be plunged into eternal darkness with no time or death, unending.'**_

A soft glow surrounded me and I was starting to feel faint. Before blackness consumed me I fought to ask the one question that had plagued my mind since I arrived. "Who are you?"

The voice was silent and just before I fell I hear the answer I was seeking. _**'I am Etro, the goddess of death and time.' **_After she said that nothingness consumed me and I fell into darkness.

This time when I once again woke up I felt pain. Opening my eyes I tried to focus my blurry vision on the figures in front of me. There were two of them, one hulking person and another albeit smaller in size.

"Light are you okay!" The smaller figure blurted out, only increasing the pain in my head. Rolling to my side I covered my ears, hoping to block out the voices. The pain in my head kept increasing and I soon fell back into blissful unconscious.

XxXxXxXxXxX

Previously….

Serah walked around the house cleaning up. Here sister didn't have to wake up for a few more minutes and she wanted to have the house clean by then because knowing Clair the minute she woke up she would end up getting the house clean, even on her day off.

The doorbell rang loudly and Serah smiled before opening it, coming face to face with her fiancé as of a yesterday, Snow. The man stood about six foot and even though he looked intimidating he was a teddy bear inside.

"What's up?" She asked and he smiled and hugged her tightly.

"Ah, nothing, am I not allowed to come down and check on my future wife?" His tone was playful and she gently punched him on the shoulder.

"Well go ahead and come on in. I will be making breakfast soon. Would you like to stay and eat?" He nodded but stopped and put his hands in front of him.

"I would love to but you know sis doesn't like me at all." Serah nodded and simply shrugged.

Turning around she got back to cooking. "Don't worry, I will make her understand. Besides it's her birthday tomorrow. Remember we were going to try and tell her about everything." Snow nodded when he heard the sound of someone moving in the back bedrooms.

He quickly moved to Serah's side and about fifteen minutes later Lightning came out in her uniform, gunblade in its holster. Lightning looked at them and when her eyes locked on Snow they narrowed dangerously.

"Serah what is he doing in our house." She asked, voice low.

Said man stood further behind Serah, trying to hide behind her, which was practically impossible given his size. Serah glared at her sister. "Lightning he just stopped in to see me and I invited him for breakfast. Also you have the day off because you are working tonight. Why are you in uniform?"

Lightning shrugged. "I was planning on heading into work a bit early since I have the day off tomorrow." She said and headed towards the door before a wave of pain smashed into her and her knees gave way and she fell to the floor, smashing her shoulder on the countertop, before landing in an unmoving heap on the floor.

Serah gasped and she ran over to her sister's side and rolled her onto her back, trying to be careful of her shoulder, which was already sporting a nasty looking bruise. Snow kneeled next to her and put a hand on the older sibling's forehead.

"She's not running any fever." He said and pondered what could have caused the sudden collapse. Lightning's eyes slowly opened and she looked almost panicked, as if she didn't know who we were or where she was.

"Light are you okay!" I asked. Light closed her eyes and rolled over, covering her ears before she once more went limp.

Snow moved closer. "We should move her to her room until she wakes up. Can you call her work and tell them that she might not be in today?"

Serah nodded and ran over to the phone while Snow gathered up the unconscious soldier in his arms. When he picked her up he realized just how light she was and smiled. 'When she wakes up I am going to get the beating of a lifetime.' He thought with a small smirk.

Walking into the woman's room he noticed that it was neat. Not a single thing was out of place. Setting her gently on the bed he removed her weapon and holster before covering her up with a thin blanket.

When he was done Serah walked into the room, phone in hand. Lt. Amador said that was fine and she could just come in the day after tomorrow. He said she needed the time off anyways and he is calling it an mandatory day off. He also said he will stop by later to check in on her." She said with a small laugh.

Half the day passed and Lightning had still not woken up. At about 1400 Lightning finally started coming to. Serah, who had sat next to her most of the day, grabbed her hand gently and held it close to her face.

XxXxXxXxXxX

Once more coming to I opened my eyes and saw Serah leaning over me. "Hey Serah." I coughed out. She smiled and I could tell that she had been crying. Reaching behind her she grabbed a glass of water and I sat up, gratefully taking it and finishing it all in a gulp.

I handed the glass back to her. "Thank you."

She nodded when Snow burst in the door with a large smile on his face. "Hey Sis, it's good to see back in the world of the living." He said but quickly covered his mouth at Serah's glare.

I sighed softly. "Snow, how many times have I told you not to call me your sister." Serah and Snow's eyes widened and they stared at me like I had just said something wrong. "What?"

Snow walked forward until he was standing on the end of the bed. "Lightning, this was the first time I had ever called you sis." Lightning looked up at him confused before she looked over at Serah and saw the white bandage surrounding her upper arm, and realized that Etro had granted her wish and she had somehow been sent back in time.

"Oh, um…" An awkward silence filled up the room before the ringing of the doorbell sounded. Snow quickly ran to get it, probably to get away from the stifling silence. Lightning nearly chuckled at his actions but held it in.

She tried to get out of bed but Serah grabbed her good shoulder and gently pushed her back. "Nope, you collapsed today. You will be staying in bed until I feel that you will be okay and not pull another stunt like that last one." She demanded and Light was taken aback by her tone and could merely nodded.

Smiling Serah nodded. "Good, now I believe you have a visitor so I will leave and let him talk to you." She said and left the room. A few seconds past and Amador walked into the room.

Before she could stand at attention he waved her down and smiled. "I don't want you disobeying your sisters orders because she scares me almost as much as you do some times." He said with a hearty chuckle. He took Serah's place in the chair next to her bed.

"So I heard you collapsed today. You feel alright?" He asked and Lightning nodded.

"Yes sir. I feel fine." She said before looking towards the door and was grateful that he had shut it on his way in. "Sir, there is something I need to talk to you about."

He nodded for her to continue. "Sir, you probably already know but PSICOM has been nervous over the past few days about something." Thinking about how to continue she came up with a small lie. "I overheard one of them talking about purging this entire city. Apparently there is a pulse L'cie around and PSICOM is moving everyone to pulse in two days because of it."

Amador's eyes were wide and he scooted a bit closer. "Are you sure about this, because if it's true then we need to evacuate the civilians as soon as possible."

Lightning shook her head. "Sir evacuating the civilians will only cause a mass uproar. PSICOM will not hesitate to kill anyone that tries to leave. When the purge comes I will be going on it to help the people that get purged because they won't get to pulse. PSICOM plans to destroy everyone in Hanging edge before they even get there."

Amador could only nod. "I believe you, PSICOM does seem like the type of military to do something like that. Look when the time comes I will meet you by the trains. I might not be much help but I want to protect everyone as well. And if we do make it to pulse then the civilians will need protectors."

Lightning sighed in relief and nodded. "Thank you sir." He merely clapped her on the shoulder and stood up.

"No, thank you for telling me." He said and left the room. When he was gone Serah walked back in and a frown had replaced her smile.

"Light, is something going on because Amador looked frustrated when he walked out of here?" She asked and Lightning shook her head.

"It's nothing for you to worry about." She said with a smile. "Look, this is going to be really awkward, I am sorry for how I have been treating you. You are my sister and I should have treated you as such. I am so sorry." She said head hung low.

Serah was in shock, her sister hardly apologized for anything and now she was asking for forgiveness for how she had acted. Walking towards the bed she sat down next to her sister and wrapped her up in a tight hug.

"Don't worry about it your my sister I'll forgive anything." She said and continued the hug. Lightning untangled herself and smirked at her sister.

"So what are we eating for my birthday?" She questioned and Serah almost said something before she caught on an closed her mouth.

"First apologizing and now trying to be sneaky. Who are you and what have you done with lightning?" She questioned with a laugh. "But don't worry, you will find out tomorrow, and you are still not allowed to leave your bed until tomorrow to you better rest up until then." She said, ignoring the older siblings small scowl before leaving the room.

Lightning smiled softly before leaning back into the pillows. _'Things will be different this time around.' _She thought and pulled out a mystery novel.

_**A.N – I hope you all liked it, I warned that Lightning would be a bit OOC. Also if you are wondering I decided to put Amador in it since after that one scene in the game he never showed back up. Once again if anything is wrong then please inform me so I can correct it. Also please review because you reviews keep me writing. **_

_**Votes**_

_**Lightning/Amador**_

_**Lightning/Fang**_

_**Lightning/Hope**_

_**Lightning/Vanille**_

_**Lightning/Snow**_

_**-Please Vote on who the pairing will be. Around the fifth chapter the voting will end so make sure to get in your vote before then! Thanks!**_


	2. Birthday Blues

_**Once more, I do not own Final Fantasy 13 or any of the characters. I only own the plot and any characters I create myself. Thank you.**_

_**A.N – **__**This story is going to be a Lightning/Fang or Lightning/Amador pairing in the future. This will be a bit different than most stories so please bear with me. If there is anything wrong then please do not hesitate to inform me so that I can fix it as soon as possible. Also Snow proposed to Serah a day earlier than in the game and Lightning will be just a bit OOC.**_

_**Summary – After the fall of Orphan instead of being crystallized Lightning ends up getting sent back to the past and ends up back in Bodhan the day before her birthday. Knowing what the future holds now she journeys to save her sister and save the future while changing as much as possible.**_

Chapter 2,

The sun fell on the city of Bodhum, allowing the civilians to prepare themselves for the fireworks. Lightning got up and changed into a pair of pants and a white shirt. Strapping on her combat boots she smiled softly to herself.

"Tomorrow everything will change." Tying the final shoe lace she strapped on her weapon holster and walked outside.

Serah had left a few hours ago with Snow, something she didn't really approve of but ignored it, knowing nothing she said would change anything.

Walking outside she wondered down towards the edge of the beach, where the fireworkds were being held. When she had finally found an empty spot on the sand she sat down and leaned back on her hands, waiting for the show to start.

She closed her eyes and let the warm breeze relax her. _'This will be the last day I will be able to enjoy just relaxing.' _Absorbed in her own thoughts she did not hear someone running towards her until something slammed painfully into her side, sending her and the other figure sprawling.

Grunting softly she wrapped her arms around her now pained ribs and looked up to see a head full ofred hair and fur next to her. _'Vanille, i didn't know she was at Bodhum.'_

Standing up, she dusted her cloths off and held out a hand to the fallen girl. "Are you okay?" Vanille stared up at her with red rimmed eyes and nodded slightly.

Vanille stared at the hand for a second before taking it in her own, letting the older woman pick her up. "I am sorry for running into you."

Lightnig nodded and let go of the girls hand. It was different seeing this side of the Vanille, during their journey she had always been so happy and strong willed. Not once did she ever see the girl cry except at the end when Fang had taken her place to become Ragnarock.

"Is everything okay?"

Vanille sniffled softly and wiped at her eyes. "Everything is fine. I am just having a bit of trouble finding someone."

The younger girl then procedded to give a complete description of the person she was looking for, wich unsuprisingly, sounded exactly like Fang.

Lightning pointed at a few buildings on the beach. "This Fang sounds like someone who likes to have a bit of fun. If she is here she could very well be at some of the local bars. Do you need me to take you to them or do you know where they are now?"

Studying the buildings she pointed at a bit closer she smiled and nodded. "I have them down. Thank you very much..."

"My name is Lightning Farron." Nodding Vanille took off down the shore towards the first bar she had pointed out. When she was gone Lightning sat back down and looked up at the bursting lights that filled the endless sky.

_'I wish I knew where Fang was. Perhaps then I could have another ally when everyone gets purged.' _She thought silently to herself.

The rest of the night passed without incident, no more getting ran over by children mostly. She had ran back into Lt. Amador and they had exchanged a few pleasintries but nothing more, not wanting to look suspicious infront of the PSICOM soldiers that stood everywhere.

When she had finally gotten back home she saw Serah fast alseep on the couch. Smiling softly she gathered her younger sister up in her arms and carried her towards her room. Tucking her into bed Lightning turned off the light and shut the door quietly behind her.

Walking back to her own room she changed into a pair of shorts and a t-shirt before getting into bed herself. Laying back she crossed her arms behind her head and stared up at the celing. '_I wonder what's going to happen tomorrow?'_

Closing her eyes she easily fell into a restful sleep after what seemed like months of having to sleep on Gran Pulse.

Morning came quickly. Sunlight filtered through the window, hitting Lightning in the face, waking her out of her slumber. Sitting up she rubbed the last rements of sleep out of her eyes but before she could even step out of bed she was greeted with a cup of orange juice in her face.

"Serah, what are you doing up so early in the morning?" She asked, slight amusment lining her voice.

Said person laughed lightly and set the drink down on the nightstand before pointing at the clock. "It's not that early, you slept almost until noon today."

Lightning's eyes widened and she grabbed the clock, almost yelling when she saw the time. "I have never slept this late before." She jumped out of bed and grabbed her uniform before running to the bathroom to change. "Why didn't you wake me?"

Rolling her eyes at her sisters actions Serah shook her head at the bathroom door. "You just looked so peaceful for once so I didn't want to bother you. Plus it's easier for me to cook without you constantly trying to come in and help."

An indiginent huff came from the bathroom before Lightning stepped out. "I could have helped...somehow."

"Sis, you can't even boil water without setting off the fire alarm some how. Do you honestly expect me to let you help in cooking your birthday meal and not be in fear of you possibly burning the house down?" She questioned, earning a glare from her older sister.

Lightning grabbed her weapon and holster, quickly strapping it on her back in it's normal position. "I will have you know I have gotten a little better." She stated, trying to defend herself from her sisters accusations.

Serah adopted Lightning's pose by crossing her arms over her chest. "Really, because from my standpoint you tried cooking some scrambled eggs last week and ended up catching the pan on fire."

Sighing Lightning shrugged and left the room, her sister right behind her. When she got in the kitchen she saw Snow standing next to the dining room table that was covered in some of her favorite foods. A small smile on her face she glanced back at Serah.

"Thank you for this." She nodded and pushed Lightning into one of the chairs before going to stand next to Snow.

If Lightning didn't know what was about to happen she would have been worried about the look on her younger sisters face and knew that this time she was not going to mess this up as badly as she had the last time she had her twenty-first birthday.

"Light, there is something I need to tell you." At her nod Serah continued. "The day before yesterday, when you passed out, Snow asked me to marry him and I said yes."

Even though she had accepted this in the past it was still hard for her to think that her little sister was going to be getting married to the so called hero. She frowned for a second before looking up at Snow. "Do you promise to always look out for her and protect her with everything you have?" She questioned, her voice cold.

Snow's jaw dropped and his eyes widened before he ran to stand in front of her. "I promise to always watch out and protect Serah from any danger. This I promise." He swore, placing his hand over his heart like he always did when he made a promise.

She stared at him for a second before nodding. "I belive you." He started to thank her but she grabbed one of the knives off of the table and pointed it at him. "But know this, if you ever hurt her I will make sure you regret it for the rest of your life."

Snow gulped, visably frightened, before nodding and running to stand behind Serah who currently looked very amused at the whole situation.

After that was all said an done Serah once more looked at her sister, this time almost afraid of something. "There is one more thing." Light nodded and she unwrapped the bandage around her upper arm revealing the black brand signaling that she was a Pulse L'cie.

"I got this a couple days ago when I was around the vestige." Lightning could only stare at the brand for a bit before the shock of what her sister had said brought her back to focus.

Standing up she walked over to her sister and gently grabbed her arm, bringing it closer to get a better look at the black mark. There were no arrows and it was as if her brand and not gotten to the point that it was when she found Serah on the vestige.

"You still have time. What was your focus?" She asked, her voice almost to quiet for either of them to hear the question.

Serah shook her head. "I don't really know. When I got it all I saw was a hazy dream and I can't even remember it."

Tears started to form in her eyes and Lightning could only grab her sister in a hug. "Don't worry, everything will work out, just wait."

Serah nodded before she rubbed her eyes and pointed back at the food. "I guess we better eat all of this before it goes to waste."

They all sat down and started to eat although Lightning thought she was going to be sick watching Snow scarf down food like it would be his last meal.

Half an hour later all the food was gone and the dishes were clean. Serah put a small box down in front of her and smiled softly. "Happy twenty-first birthday sis."

Unwrapping the bow she pulled off the lid of the box and smiled when she saw the polished knife laying down there. Grabbing the weapon she pulled out the blade and looked at the enscription on it. _May Light guide and protect you._

She put the weapon in her side pouch and ruffled her sister's hair. "Thank you for the gift Serah. I like it." Serah beamed at her and nodded.

"I thought you could use something practical rather than clothes since you wear your uniform all the time anyways." Light felt a little shame at that but kept the feeling off her face or she knew that her sister would see it and ask questions.

She was about to say something else when a small metal canister crashed in through the window. Noticing the color on the can she grabbed Serah. "Get outside now!" She shouted before shoving both her and Snow out the back door, hoping to avoid whoever was out front.

The smoke grenade went off before they got outside and a haze of blue filled the house. Bursting out of the smoke Lightning came to a complete halt when she noticed a small squad of PSICOM standing there with rifles aimed.

Snow crashed out of the door behind her with Serah in tow when he saw the soldiers standing there. "Oh Shit." He stated before all hell broke loose.

_**A.N – I hoped you all enjoyed this chapter. I am sorry for not being able to update in a while but work is keeping me pretty busy. I will at least try to update once a week mabye once every two weeks but unless I get a lot of free time to write that will be as quick as I can get the chapters up. **_

_**I also won't be able to update the entire month of September because I will be in training so please bear with me and I promise up update quite a few chapters after that.**_

_**As for votes, so far Fang/Lightning is winning **_

_**Fang/Lightning – 7**_

_**Vanille/Lightning - 2**_

_**Hope/Lightning - 4**_

_**Fang/Vanille/Lightning – 1**_

_**Please continue to vote as it will be open until the fifth chapter or possibly later, whenever I feel like it should. Also thank you for everyone who reviewed and read on the last chapter. I also really appreciate the person who gave me some advice. Please review on this chapter for it is your reviews that keep me writing. Thank you.**_


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